Local News

ACTORS HOPE ‘MIZ MARTHA’ BRINGS ABOUT CHANGE

Melan Thomas participated in the Polished Pebbles’ Mommy & Me Entrepreneurship Program in 2020. She came up with the idea for her business Beauty Glam Nails, a service that would provide nail services to children in hospitals. Thomas presented her idea during Polished Pebbles’ and won capital to start her business.

AUBURN GRESHAM APARTMENTS BREAKS GROUND ON 79TH STREET

Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot joined Ald. David Moore, City officials and local leaders on Wednesday, Aug. 24, to break ground on Auburn Gresham Apartments, a two-building, 58-unit, mixed-use complex in the heart of Auburn Gresham that represents the first of more than 10 major construction projects to move forward through the City’s INVEST South/West initiative.

ComEd Celebrates First Graduating Class of New Job Training Program

ComEd announced the first-ever cohort of the ComEd Craft Academy program has graduated, with nine participants demonstrating the knowledge and physical competencies required to enter the craft workforce, comprised of roles in the skilled trades, including entry-level positions such as line workers and construction workers. The Craft Academy launched earlier this year to expand training opportunities for prospective skilled trades workers, a key focus of ComEd’s plan to grow its workforce to meet the demands of the clean energy transition underway in Illinois.

Young entrepreneur gets boost to start business

Melan Thomas participated in the Polished Pebbles’ Mommy & Me Entrepreneurship Program in 2020. She came up with the idea for her business Beauty Glam Nails, a service that would provide nail services to children in hospitals. Thomas presented her idea during Polished Pebbles’ and won capital to start her business.

Olive-Harvey College prepares students for TDL industry

Dr. Kimberly Hollingsworth has been working in higher education for 27 years. She has worked in different capacities within the City Colleges of Chicago during the past 22 years, including stints at Harold Washington College, Malcom X College and Richard J. Daley College. Now, Dr. Hollingsworth is the president of Olive-Harvey, where she has been since 2019.

PROGRAM TEACHES YOUNG PEOPLE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE ENVIRONMENT

During Jeremy Whistenton’s freshman year of high school he was charged with finding a summer experience that related to agriculture. He chose to participate in Friends of the Forest Preserve. He loved the experience so much, he ended up participating in that program every summer. Later on, when he was looking for leadership opportunities, he went back to the Friends of the Forest Preserve, this time to participate in the Forest Preserves Experience program.

ComEd to Hire Another 75 Entry-Level Trade Workers to Support Clean Energy Transition

ComEd is encouraging job seekers to apply for new entry-level positions that will play an important role in the clean energy transformation underway in Illinois. Over the next 10 days, ComEd is accepting applications for 75 entry-level overhead helper positions, which provide a path to a full-time union career as a line worker, and an essential part of the team powering communities across northern Illinois. Applicants can apply now on ComEd’s careers page.

Illinois Tollway Welcomes Cassaundra Rouse as Executive Director

The Illinois Tollway today announced the promotion of Cassaundra Rouse to Executive Director. Rouse is a longtime veteran of the agency, most recently serving as the agency’s Chief Operating Officer.

Back to School, But Not Afterschool, for Many Students

There are 24.7 million U.S. children not in an afterschool program who would be enrolled if a program were available to them, according to a survey of 1,500 parents conducted in May and June of this year. That is up from 24.5 million in early 2020, just before the pandemic began, and the highest number ever recorded. Unmet demand for afterschool programs is significantly higher among Latino and Black children (at 60% and 54% respectively) than among children overall (49%). Unmet demand has been growing as the cost of running programs has far outstripped resources.

Leadership Greater Chicago Announces LGC Class of 2023

The Leadership Greater Chicago (LGC) announced the 2023 Class of its Signature Fellows Program, the area’s premier civic leadership development program. These 53 accomplished and diverse individuals represent a cross-section of professionals from the corporate, nonprofit, government and education sectors. During the 10-month program, with the city as a classroom, they will be immersed in major socioeconomic issues facing the region through full-day seminars, neighborhood site visits, conversations with subject matter experts and cultural events.

Long-time Chatham Businessman and Veteran Receives Honors

Tailor-rite Cleaners owner and Veteran Joseph Caldwell Sr., was invited to fly to our country's Capital on Wednesday, August 24th, 2022. The Honor Flight Network of independent national Hubs works collectively to celebrate veterans who served in WWII, Vietnam, and the Korean War. Previously scheduled flights were postponed due to COVID-19.

ALDERMAN STEPHANIE COLEMAN PROUDLY ANNOUNCES SECOND ANNUAL LEGENDARY ENGLEWOOD MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Englewood Music Fest will be held in conjunction with the 6th year anniversary of the Englewood Square Mall. The Greater Englewood Community Development Corporation (GECDC) is the fiscal agent and partnering 501c3 for the event. Collectively they will celebrate “Englewood Excellence” -- its past, present. and future. The event will feature live music, local vendors, back-to-school programming and prizes, e-game tournament, and more!

Expect ‘The Unexpected’ at Cabaret Zazou Presents ‘Luminaire’

Liv Warfield is a singer-songwriter who is a Peoria native. Her musical journey began in Portland, but she has been returning to the Midwest for different endeavors. Now she is in Chicago to perform in Cabaret Zazou presents “Luminaire,” which is set to debut on Wednesday, Sept. 7th.

Communities In Schools of Chicago Expands to Support Students at 200 Chicago Public Schools in “Vital” School Year

Communities In Schools of Chicago, one of Chicago’s most wide-reaching education non-profits, announced that it will be expanding its support to more than 200 Chicago Public Schools, allowing them to serve as many as 60,000 students in 2022-23.

Rep. Kelly, Lurie Children’s, Illinois PIRG, Kids In Danger Celebrate Passage of Reese’s Law

On Monday, Aug. 15th, Congresswoman Robin Kelly (IL-02) hosted a press conference at Lurie Children’s with Reese’s Purpose, Illinois Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) and Kids In Danger (KID) to celebrate passage of Rep. Kelly’s bipartisan legislation, Reese’s Law. The legislation directs the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to develop and implement new safety standards to protect children from ingesting button cell batteries. Reese’s Law is named for Reese Hamsmith, an 18-month-old child who tragically passed away after ingesting a button cell battery.